HERE I AM! Only eight days left of my grade eleven year, then I will embark on what is sure to be the greatest summer of my life! It is safe to say I never expected to be here today, but I am so so so glad that I am.

Top Fundraiser at 6 years old!

With the title of Miss Teen South Central Saskatchewan World 2013 I have been an active volunteer at events in my school community as well as in the Saskatchewan Down Syndrome Society community. On June 1st, at the annual SDSS Fun Run I was working to ensure each guest was registered and ready to go. There, I met a six year old by the name of Owen who personally raised over $2 000 for an organization he has grown to love.

Last Friday, I was part of a Students Against Drunk Driving Conference as a representative of my school. There, I met students my age from all throughout the South Central region of Saskatchewan who were willing and motivated to make a change to better the lives of our peers. With adult representatives from Mental Health, school councillors, and even the mayor of Moose Jaw, we openly discussed and focused on the benefits of inspiring teens to always find a safe ride home and be responsible.

Being involved in all of these conferences and events has introduced me to so many inspiring people- of all ages. I love the idea of anyone, anywhere being able to make the decision to live a more positive life.

In a society where we can sometimes feel overwhelmed by the amount of tragedy seen and heard in the daily news, it is beautiful to be reminded of all of the true kindness in the strangers walking past us each day. Here I am; seeing first hand the power in a six year old boy, the power in over sixty delegates of the Miss Teen Canada Pageant and the power massive movements such as Free The Children have to improve our world.

As a grade eleven representative of Peacock Collegiate, I spent my Wednesday passing through four different elementary schools in my community to speak to the grade eights about certain anxieties they hold as they prepare to enter the world of high school. While I remember feeling all of the same things they were feeling, I couldn’t help but find it ridiculous how worked up we come to feel about others opinions of ourselves. At that age, we feel that everyone is watching us and any wrong move will surely doom us to the worst fate possible.

Do not be afraid

I have always been one to hear from others that I come across as someone who really doesn’t stress about what others think of me. I take this as a wonderful compliment, if understood in the right context. I believe it is vital to not allow anyone else’s negative perspective of yourself stop you from being yourself. If you are striving to be the best you can be and put the effort in to have a strong sense of self-awareness- do not be afraid to go for the gold without concern to the doubts and misjudgments others build up to bring you down. This is something that personally is a daily state of challenging myself to see the bigger picture and the positives outcomes in each move I make. Channeling your energy into building upon your own strengths rather than the weaknesses perceived by others can transform you into a happier, stronger person!

Now, when consulting with the elementary classes, I didn’t go that in depth with my ideals on growing into the best version of yourself-I’m lucky it hasn’t scared you away yet! I chose to focus on the idea of seeing high school not as a challenge to master the art of stoichiometry and trigonometry, but as exploring and mastering the art of who you are. I believe we will all go through certain self exploration periods throughout our whole lifetimes, but wanted to inspire the young crowd to take advantage of every window of opportunity their teen years will be exposed to.

The Pageant has so far been the most outstanding experience I have had in my life. Each day I am growing and becoming more like the person I have always wanted to be. Who knew I would find just what I needed by competing in a pageant?

I love to share my perspective on these personal aspects of the Pageant because I feel it is hard to understand just how life-changing they are without experiencing them first hand. This ties into one big burst of love filled “thank you”s to all of my sponsors and supporters that have been a key role in my success as Miss Teen South Central Saskatchewan World so far. I am beyond ecstatic for the week I will spend in Toronto this summer!

Here’s to getting through these next two weeks of fundraisers and finals with a smile rooted in the truth that I am only one month and five days away from the best week ever!!